"They've been gone how long?!" The voice carried down the hall. "Why the hell didn't anyone wake me up?!" The owner of the voice was exasperated. "Oh don't give me that crap, Corrine. You know exactly whose fault it is." There was the sound of a chair scraping across the floor. "Where is he?"

The 'he' in question was a Human called Merlin. At least, that was his name. But most just called him 'crazy pants' or other things not so flattering. It hadn't always been this way. Once, Merlin had been a very highly respected Mage; a master of water magic. Then, one day, he'd made a collection of potions to confuse his memories in order to protect a prophecy and he'd never been the same since.

Though he had eventually restored his memories, the damage had been done and he was now nuttier than squirrel poo. Merlin's appearance varied from day to day. Occasionally he looked normal; dressed in blue like most people from his element, his blue eyes bright and his blond hair neatly combed. But, most of the time, he looked like a rather eccentric old man with absolutely no dress sense. His outfits ranged from waders and a frock coat to a waistcoat and summer dress; his hair resembling a fluffy white cloud that had been forced through several hedges.

Today was one of his mad days and he was sporting a top hat and tails over board shorts and some flippers. He was also carrying on a conversation with a snail he had found in his morning cup of tea. The door to his room/nest/man-cave/experimental workshop banged open and Merlin yelped in surprise, taking cover behind his snail friend. The owner of the exasperated voice stood in the doorway.

Matthew was a fair bit taller than Merlin and wore mostly red because his element was fire. His hair was an untidy mass of dark curls and his green eyes were narrowed on the Human and his snail. Matthew was a Half-Elf and he had long since lost all respect for the name the Mage bore. This was chiefly because Merlin left a trail of accidental destruction everywhere he went.

"It was him!" Merlin proclaimed, pointing at the snail.

Matthew raised an eyebrow, "I doubt that very much."

"You gave me away!" Merlin threw the snail back into his teacup.

Matthew rolled his eyes. It was going to be one of those days. He looked out into the hall; "Someone find Kio!"

Quicksilver: Howisshe?Isshealright?Imusetspeakwithmysisteratonce.
Hawkeye: What is that noise?
IronMan: That is the noise Pietro makes right before he's tossed out of the airlock. ~ Avengers: The Children's Crusade #6

The missing people were just coming round from their unexpected trip. Two green shapes and one red shape untangled themselves from each other. One green shape and the red shape, both female, got to their feet and looked around while the other green shape lay on his back frowning at the sky. "Nia," he said, after a long silence, turning his head to look at the woman in green, "Can you please please explain to me why I let Arthur talk me into keeping Merlin around..."

"Because you're an idiot." Nia supplied helpfully as she checked her weapons were intact. All three of the accidental tourists were Elves. Nia, like Jack (though he was half Human), was a Wood Elf and she was a warrior. In fact, she was a General in the Wood Elf army and also a member of the Royal Guard. It was therefore her job to look after Jack. Jack was the Wood Elf king but he'd been raised for the first 20 years of his life on Earth with no knowledge of his heritage or that he was the nephew of the legendary King Arthur. A fact he was regretting at this time.

Jack merely nodded in agreement to Nia's reply. "We're going to have words when I get home."

"Yeah, yeah. We believe you," the woman in red replied, though her tone suggested the opposite. Sarinel was formally a Royal Guard like Nia, however, she worked for the Fire Elf royal family and the rules where she came from were more strict than those that the Wood Elves lived by. Sarinel had adapted well to life with the Wood Elves and was now used to their laid back attitude to the command structure. The fact that she was no longer a Royal Guard helped, as did the fact that she was in a relationship with the Fire Elf king - Matthew.

Like Matthew's, Sarinel's hair was a mass of dark curls but hers was long and usually styled in an elaborate series of braids - a style popular in her homeland and one that was becoming increasingly popular with the Wood Elves. Her eyes were brown and saw more than most people realised - Sarinel was a Seer. She was also an extensively trained herbalist and healer and one of the best trackers in the Wood Elves' mountain home.

Nia's training lay solely in the arts of battle and hunting. Her auburn hair was often cut short (something which frequently horrified other Elven women) and her sharp green eyes were constantly searching for danger or possible escape routes. She was also well known for being one of the few Elven women that wore trousers. She was famous even among the other races for being an excellent warrior, with an unblemished record in single combat and she had trained alongside Jack's father.

Jack very much took after his father. They looked very alike, had similar mannerisms, were both natural born diplomats and both found the day-to-day life of being a king incredibly boring. His father had found it so boring he'd disappeared off to Earth for several hundred years, leaving his younger brother to take up the crown in his absence. Jack avoided work whenever he was able so, despite his protestations about Merlin's continued presence in the mountain, he rather enjoyed the distraction. Like all Wood Elves, Jack's eyes were green and they currently focused on the fair weather clouds overhead while a breeze tried unsuccessfully to obscure his view with his short brown hair.

Quicksilver: Howisshe?Isshealright?Imusetspeakwithmysisteratonce.
Hawkeye: What is that noise?
IronMan: That is the noise Pietro makes right before he's tossed out of the airlock. ~ Avengers: The Children's Crusade #6

Meanwhile, Matthew's request had been answered and Kio had arrived. Kio shared elements with Merlin so he was more inclined to pay attention to her. Plus, Kio was generally extremely perky, enjoyed hugs, and was everyone's friend. Her pale blonde hair was usually very simply styled because it was hard for her to sit still for long enough to do anything more, her attention easily distracted. Her attire was equally as simple despite her position as Queen of her people as Kio liked to be outside climbing trees and chasing adventure. But Kio was unique so far among the Elves as she had learned how to tap into the other three elements that she hadn't been born under - an ability that had been lost for a very long time.

Most would probably, therefore, consider this task a waste of her talents but Kio found Merlin utterly hilarious so she absolutely didn't mind. After Jack and Matthew, Kio was the youngest ruling member of a Royal family, though she had a good three centuries on both of them. Indeed, neither Jack nor Matthew were yet considered adults in Elven society being far short of the 500 year mark but Kio was arguably much more naive. It was this child-like quality and her ability to find the joy in the simplest of things that made her perfect for dealing with Merlin's shenanigans.

Matthew explained the situation to Kio in the hallway then followed her back into Merlin's rooms where the Mage in question was still taking cover - this time in a fort he had constructed out of books and the odd shoe. He was currently brandishing a limp piece of celery in what he obviously thought was a threatening manner.

"Hello, Merlin!" Kio said brightly, "Oooh are we playing forts? Can I come in?"

This turn of events confused Merlin somewhat. He looked between Kio and Matthew, "Is he coming in?"

Quicksilver: Howisshe?Isshealright?Imusetspeakwithmysisteratonce.
Hawkeye: What is that noise?
IronMan: That is the noise Pietro makes right before he's tossed out of the airlock. ~ Avengers: The Children's Crusade #6

"Okay." Jack said, finally sitting up, "I suppose we need to establish where the hell we are. Thoughts?" he looked up at Nia.

"This place feels wrong," Nia frowned, "I think we might be on Earth."

Jack groaned but Sarinel seemed to perk up at the thought of adventure. "Should we look for signs of civilisation or avoid it?" she asked, offering Jack a hand.

Jack accepted the help up and dusted himself off, "I don't know..." he looked around them. It was very green here.

"I think we should at least see what we're dealing with," Nia suggested, "It has been some time since anyone was here." As she finished speaking, her ears caught a feint sound and she turned her head to look in its direction as Sarinel did likewise.

"Something's coming," Sarinel explained to Jack who had less sensitive ears than they did thanks to his Human half.

Jack squinted in the direction they were looking, "Don't see anything..." he didn't hear it either so he had to trust them. But then... something didn't look right about the sky. "Is the air... wiggling?" he couldn't think of a better word to describe it.

"There's heat," Sarinel clarified, zeroing in on the location with her magic, "But the source is invisible...." Fortunately, fire being the element of change, she could do something about that. In the air and travelling toward them, an object appeared. "What is that?"

"That is a plane." Jack informed her, "A really cool plane that turns invisible." The plane slowed as it neared them, then hovered a short distance away. "Awesome, it hovers too!" Jack was impressed until he registered that fancy planes probably spelled government or military. He surreptitiously stepped behind Nia.

Nia raised an eyebrow at him then refocused on the strange metal thing in the sky as it lowered to the ground.

Pleasedon'tbeAmerican. Pleasedon'tbeAmerican. Pleasedon'tbeAmerican.... the mantra repeated in Jack's head. A ramp at the rear of the plane lowered.

Quicksilver: Howisshe?Isshealright?Imusetspeakwithmysisteratonce.
Hawkeye: What is that noise?
IronMan: That is the noise Pietro makes right before he's tossed out of the airlock. ~ Avengers: The Children's Crusade #6

Matthew was a hundred percent sure he was getting a migraine. Even though he was also a hundred percent sure this was impossible. He was now back in his office with a cup of coffee. Kio sat beside him on the sofa and, opposite them across the coffee table, sat Jack's father, Sigurd (though he preferred to go by 'Simon' these days).

"I'm sure Kio can trace them," Simon was saying, "Merlin's a mage. They can't have gone that far."

Matthew fixed him with a look, "Oh sure. He couldn't possibly be powerful enough to yank four people he's never met from one planet to another." (This was a sore point for Matthew having been one of those for people.)

"That was probably a fluke... or fate," Simon said in an attempt to shoo the sarcasm monster away.

"Fluke, my ass," Matthew muttered.

"He's right, though..." Kio tried, "I probably could..."

"That's not the point," Matthew frowned, "I know how those spells work. You'd have to go to wherever they are. What if you can't get back?"

Kio pulled a face.

"You know..." Simon said thoughtfully, "There is one person we know that can go anywhere she likes and really wants to be fired..."

Quicksilver: Howisshe?Isshealright?Imusetspeakwithmysisteratonce.
Hawkeye: What is that noise?
IronMan: That is the noise Pietro makes right before he's tossed out of the airlock. ~ Avengers: The Children's Crusade #6

A pair of booted feet appeared at the top of the ramp and made their way down, revealing legs and the rest of a female body along the way, topped off by a head of blonde hair. Both Nia and Sarinel watched the woman closely, the way she carried herself suggested military training. Nia's hand rested on the hilt of one of her blades.

Carol took in the sight in front of her as she exited the jet and an eyebrow raised. "Uh... you guys get lost on the way to a Renaissance Festival...?"

Oh shit. American. Jack just about managed not to go with his impulse to yell 'don't shoot me!' but only because the thought train got derailed by something shiny. "Nooo... but if there's one nearby, can you give us directions? Because I hear they're awesome and not a bit historically accurate."

"So... why are you dressed like that?" She looked them over in their bizarre attire. Some interesting colour choices and a whole lot of brown leather.... Were those weapons real?

"Why are you dressed like that?" Jack countered, once again seized by the impulse to yell 'don't shoot me'.

Carol looked down at her SHIELD uniform and shrugged. He had her there, she supposed. "Yeah, okay.... so.... are you lost or something?"

"You could say that..." Jack glanced between Nia and Sarinel before refocusing on the blonde, "This is going to sound crazy..."

-

It is at this point where I would like to invite players in the RP that might be reading this to join in! Either already seated on the jet returning from some heroing or at the school when Carol arrives with her strange company. If you would be interested in joining the shenanigans, let me know - I would be delighted to include you!

Quicksilver: Howisshe?Isshealright?Imusetspeakwithmysisteratonce.
Hawkeye: What is that noise?
IronMan: That is the noise Pietro makes right before he's tossed out of the airlock. ~ Avengers: The Children's Crusade #6

<Carol> Having taken the explanation of the three weirdos being from another planet, Carol decided they were less weird because being aliens earned them a certain amount of levity there as did the fact they were apparently from an alternate reality also. It also seemed that they were to blame for the new invisibility unit on the jet malfunctioning which was good because that was expensive.

<Carol> She decided to take the aliens back to the school where she could keep an eye on them and then call Fury so he could decide whose problem they were. They'd probably still be hers, knowing her luck. She led the way up the ramp, "Just take a seat anywhere and buckle up," she gestured to the empty chairs. "Cessily, Elves. Elves, Cessily." She introduced them.

<Jack> Sarinel and Nia were eyeing the chairs with suspicion but Jack looked at the other person in the jet and stopped in his tracks. Tiny pieces of a puzzle came together all at once and he made a small squeaking sound.

<Cessily> "Hello!" Cessily automatically raised her hand to wave and smiled at the newcomers. In the meantime, her mind caught up with what was actually going on around her. "Wait, what?" She turned towards Carol as if looking for help, then back at the strange strangers. "Like, for real?"

<Carol> "Mmhmm. They broke our jet... or she did," she pointed at Sarinel, "But she promised to fix it." She turned her head to Jack when he squeaked and raised an eyebrow. That sound should not come out of a guy.

<Nia> Nia had also turned to look at Jack. She was familiar with that sound. "What's the matter?"

<Jack> Jack shook his head, still trying to comprehend what he was seeing. What came out of his mouth was, "You're really shiny."

<Cessily> Cessily blinked, wearing a confused expression on her face, then looked down at herself. "Huh?" Looking back up, she now displayed a wry smile. "Oh, yeah, I am! I guess I got used to that. Don't be scared, I promise I'm harmless." She looked at the other new arrivals. "Uhm... I'm Cessily, by the way."

<Nia> "Something broke him..." Nia decided to just steer Jack into a seat until he recovered enough to explain, "These chairs.... do they contain iron?" there was a distinct feeling of it all around so it was hard to pinpoint where it was coming from.

<Cessily> "Uh... I'm not sure," Cessily replied, exchanging a look with Carol. "I mean, they probably do somewhere inside, but I'm pretty sure the cushions don't. Why? Are you allergic or something?" Could people be allergic to iron? She had no idea.

<Sarinel> "Something like that..." Sarinel took a careful seat, "I'm Sarinel, by the way. This is Nia, and Jack." She gestured to each in turn.

<Nia> Nia also took a seat and, rather than fiddling with a seatbelt she'd no idea how to use, created vines to secure all three of them in their seats.

<Cessily> "Oh, that's neat," Cessily commented upon watching the vines appearing out of nowhere, before moving closer to Carol. "So..." she began, keeping her voice low, "where did these people come from? They're not really elves, are they? As in, Santa's elves, or like Legolas, right?"

<Carol> "I think more like Legolas... only apparently way cooler." She had also noticed the vines. "Too tall to be santa elves.... apparently they're from an alternate reality. They're familiar with Earth but theirs is... different." She looked over her shoulder, "Can we have invisibility back before we take off?"

<Sarinel> "Oh, yes of course." She offered a smile and concentrated for a moment, a small beep from the console in front of Carol indicated it was functioning again. "It should be working now."

<Cessily> "You know, I'd say that's crazy, if I hadn't already seen crazier things happening," Cessily remarked, looking back over her shoulder at their unusual passengers. "It's still ranks pretty high on my crazy scale, though."

<Carol> Carol nodded, "Yep... apparently some crazy guy is responsible for their being here so.... the crazy factor is high." She raised the ramp and engaged the engines to take off.

<Cessily> "Well, at least they were found by the right people first." Cessily gave a nervous little chuckle. "I mean, we're pretty much the leading experts on crazy happenings by now." She put on her own seatbelts when the engines started howling. "So, where are we taking them? Back the school?"

<Carol> "Yep. Can't think of anywhere better." She sighed, "Then I guess I'll make some calls and see what they say..."

<Sarinel> Behind them, Sarinel turned to Nia, "They're whispering a lot... do you think they know we can hear them anyway?" she asked, also in a whisper.

<Nia> Nia gave a small shrug, glancing at Jack. "Probably not... humans have terrible hearing."

<Nia> "Well now you have two real Elves and a half-Elf to meet," Nia supplied, "And hopefully that will be all...."

<Sarinel> "Probably won't be though... clearly he's having one of his days." Sarinel sighed.

<Cessily> Cessily turned her chair around. "What do you mean?" she asked. "Are you saying more people from your reality might come over?" She appeared rather excited at the prospect. "Oh! Do you have orcs, too? What about goblins? Are there unicorns?"

<Sarinel> "It's possible... the person that sent us here did so without our permission and likely by accident so it could happen again... and someone may be sent on purpose to bring us home." She cocoked her head on one side at Cessily's questions and tried to remember what creatures had interested Matthew the most, "None of those... but there are Trolls, Mermaids and Dragons..."

<Cessily> Cessily eyes went wide and appeared to sparkle with amazement. "That's so cool!" She grinned at their guests. "Your world sounds so much more interesting than ours. I mean, we have dinosaurs, which are also pretty amazing, but sadly they're all dead."

<Cessily> She gave Jack a curious look. "You seem to know more about our world," she said. "Have you been here before?"

<Jack> He nodded, "Yeah... I grew up on Earth... long story.... Except my Earth was different and your Earth is awesome."

<Cessily> "Wow, another Earth? Maybe we should start giving them numbers because I can see this getting confusing quick." A grin appeared on Cessily's face. "But it makes me happy that apparently we're not the most boring one."

<Carol> "I think Broo was numbering them... not sure what number he gave this one... guess it depends which one he started with but he's in the thousands somewhere...."

<Jack> "I wouldn't say ours is boring... or it might be now... I suppose they could have blown themselves up in the last hundred years since we last looked in on them...." he shrugged, "But before it was interesting just not as interesting as here."

<Cessily> "Well, welcome to our planet Earth then," Cessily said, offering the three of them a cheerful grin. "Maybe we'll get to visit yours someday, because I totally want to meet some trolls and dragons."

<Cessily> Cessily contemplated that prospect for a moment, then laughed. "Then I should better hope a brave knight comes rescue me. Unless it's a nice dragon and we become friends."

<Jack> "Most Dragons are nice... some are grumpy. They're just like people... only with wings and stuff.... also don't tell them they're like people they'll get totally offended and probably go all old-school and try to eat your head... Matt had that happen to him once... and he didn't even insult the Dragon first."

<Cessily> "What do you mean, once?" Cessily asked, automatically reaching up to put both hands on either side of her head. Yes, she liked where it was, and preferred to keep it there. "Do such things happen to him often?"

<Jack> "Dragons trying to eat his face?" Jack looked over at Sarinel, "Not sure. Do they?"

<Sarinel> Sarinel blinked at him, "Not usually.... actually I'd say that was more your department because you just open your mouth and words fall out. He thinks first."

<Jack> He nodded, having to admit she had a point there. "Fair enough."

<Cessily> "Well, good thing I don't taste that good, because I sometimes have the same problem with the whole words and thinking before you say them part." Cessily turned to Carol. "Do you think we should ask Broo if he can find us a way into their world. I mean, I'm sure they want to go home again, and I totally want to see a dragon. And maybe ride one, too."

<Carol> "Sure we can ask Broo. He's probably played around with that portal enough."

<Cessily> "Yay!" Cessily bounced a little in her seat. "At least I want to take a picture of one. That reminds me, I totally need to take pictures of you guys, too! We don't get dimensional travellers very often. Except those naked little blue bamfs. We got a lot of aliens lately, though."

<Cessily> "Wow, when did my life get that crazy?" she wondered to herself.

<Carol> "Probably about the time you woke up with super powers. That's about when mine went to hell." Carol guessed, "Well, we're here..." the school came into view and she started the descent.

<Cessily> Cessily gave a slow nod in response. "Yeah, I think that's when the trend towards the crazy started." She turned around and grinned at their passengers. "I hope you'll like it here. There's free food, pools, and a room for everyone. Plus, the place already looks pretty much like a fantasy land, so you won't stand out."

<Jack> Jack looked back and forth between his companions and all their weapons. "Are you suuuure?"

<Cessily> Cessily followed Jack's gaze. "Hmm, yeah, maybe it would be better to leave those where they can't scare the other students for now. No worries, you won't need your weapons at the school. It's a pretty safe place. Mostly."

<Jack> "They are plenty deadly enough without the pointy things," Jack nodded sagely, then frowned and looked over at Sarinel. "I see what you mean about the talking thing..."

<Warren> Warren was in the air when he saw the jet land and decided to take a look. It didn't take him long to fly over to where they were and started to circle it until someone came out.

<Cessily> "And here we are," Cessily announced as soon as the jet touched down, casting off her seatbelt. She walked back to the door and waved at Warren while the ramp lowered.

<Carol> As the jet touched down, Carol turned in her seat, "Deadly without or not, visual weapons put people on edge for some reason... I guess you can leave them in here or my office...."

<Nia> Once they were safely back on the ground, Nia removed the vines securing them in their seats and got to her feet.

<Jack> "Do either of those places have lockable doors?"

<Carol> "My office, then." She gestured them ahead of her off the jet.

<Warren> Warren noticed Cess waving at him and gave her a wave back. He decided to land just a little away from the ship. "Hey Cess.... Uhmm are we planning a costume party?" He cocked his head looking at the others in the ship.

<Jack> Sarinel and Nia seemed to be taking all the weirdness in their stride, probably because they didn't understand the significance of what they were seeing. Jack, on the other hand, came to a stop again and just stared.

<Cessily> "Not really, though that's an awesome idea and we totally should have one," Cessily replied. "Hey, Warren. Carol and I picked up some guests. They're... not exactly from around here."

<Sarinel> Sarinel raised a hand in a wave at the new person with wings. Nia was already looking for danger and Sarinel decided to let her get on with it.

<Warren> Warren stared a little and gave her a wave back. "Uhmm yeah, wouldn't have been able to tell." He was still giving them all a puzzled look.

<Carol> "My office is this way," Carol gestured to the large building up the hill a little way, "Your things'll be safe in there."

<Cessily> "Apparently they're from a different dimension," Cessily explained. "Like an alternate Earth. Just with dragons!"

<Sarinel> Sarinel decided not to correct the silver girl because she reminded her of Kio and instead grabbed Jack's arm to tug him toward the building as he appeared to be broken again.

<Warren> "There's more of those portal things now...? Are we sure that roach kid should be allowed access to tools?" Warren cocked an eyebrow at Cess.

<Cessily> "D'uh, of course we are!" Cessily replied and flashed Warren a grin. "How else are we going to get there to see all the fantastic beasties they must have over there if not for Broo's portals?"

<Sarinel> "Well you could hope someone from our world comes to collect us... as it was someone from our world that sent us here in the first place." Sarinel suggested, "Of course... who might come to collect us could present further problems..."

<Cessily> "We don't have to fight them," Cessily told Warren. "I just want to see them. Besides, apparently they aren't as mean as people believe." She looked at Sarinel. "Think we need to worry about that?"

<Sarinel> She shook her head, "Oh no. They're only very dangerous when provoked. You can have quite nice conversations with them otherwise."

<Nia> At the back of the group, Nia knelt on the grass and a large wolf materialised out of nowhere. She gave it a gentle pat then watched it head off to explore the area.

<Warren> "What the fuck was that?" Warren just watched the wolf appear and then take off. His little bird head cock popping happening again.

<Nia> Nia rose to her feet again, "That was a fylgja. I think the word you would use is 'familiar'. Where we come from, most people can call them."

<Cessily> Cessily blinked and looked on with a dumbfounded expression, before an excited grin appeared on her face. "Magic puppy!"

<Sarinel> "Every fylgja is unique to the one that summons it," Sarinel explained, smiling at Cessily's reaction.

<Warren> "Well... I guess there's been weirder things here." Warren was still flabbergasted by the instant puppy.

<Cessily> "That's so amazing!" Cessily beamed like an excited child. "Can you do other magic things?"

<Sarinel> She nodded, "Of course. Every element has their own gifts too. Nia and Jack are governed by Earth and myself by Fire."

<Cessily> "Really? That's so cool!" Cessily nudged Carol and gave her a grin. "You could say Carol here is governed by the elements of coffee and anger."

<Carol> Carol laughed, starting up the steps and opening the door, "Sounds about right."

<Cessily> Cessily turned around to their new guests. "Do you guys have coffee?" she asked. "If not, you definitely need to try some."

<Nia> "We have coffee - we were introduced to it by those who spent a lot of time on Earth.... though most of us prefer tea." She followed behind Sarinel as Carol led the way into her office and began removing her weapons as requested.

<Warren> "We have tea too. I'm pretty sure we have a few British students that would start a riot if there wasn't any."

<Sarinel> "Even if there wasn't any, we could get some," Sarinel assured him, also disarming.

<Carol> Carol eyed Jack, "You got anything dangerous on you?" She prodded him to check he was still with them.

<Jack> "Uh.... not sure..." he stuck his hands in his pockets to check, retrieving a twenty pence piece from the year 2038, half a peanut and an acorn.

<Warren> "Careful... those nuts might attract some attention you do not want." Warren laughed a little.

<Jack> Very very carefully, Jack set the acorn down on Carol's desk. "So long as you don't badmouth trees it's perfectly harmless." He tossed the half a peanut in the trash, Odin only knew how long that had been in there. The twenty pence piece went back into his pocket.

Quicksilver: Howisshe?Isshealright?Imusetspeakwithmysisteratonce.
Hawkeye: What is that noise?
IronMan: That is the noise Pietro makes right before he's tossed out of the airlock. ~ Avengers: The Children's Crusade #6

A section of grass inexplicably died in a strip about three inches wide and two feet long. From that patch of dead grass, a strip of wood rose and kept rising until a door stood all on its own in the clearing. The door swung open. From one side of the door, the field was visible through the gap but from the other, the side the door had swung out into, the space it had concealed was a deep forboding blackness.

Out of that blackness, an equally black mass tumbled. It appeared to be a collection of fabric and feathers repeatedly trying to rearrange themselves. The feathers fluttered, the fabric billowed, black smoke swirled around the shape on the ground then the door slammed shut and the movement collapsed in on itself, finally coalescing into a vaguely humanoid shape sprawled on the grass. It groaned.

After a moment or so, the shape moved. A pale hand swept long black hair out of an equally pale face and blue eyes scanned the immediate viscinity. Realising she was alone, the woman sighed, "Bugger. I missed them." She untangled herself from her cloak and skirts, her attire just as jet black as her hair, and got to her feet. "Oh well. At least no one saw me fall on my face..."

Dusting herself off, Mortianna turned back for the door, turned the handle and pulled. The door did not open. "Huh?" she tried again. It still didn't open. "Oi!" She kicked the door and tried again. Nope. Planting a foot on the door frame for leverage, she pulled with all her might. Still, the door stubbornly refused to budge. "Well that's not good..."

This had never happened before. That was her door. It was supposed to open for her. How else was she supposed to get to the inbetween? She dismissed her cloak, watching it fall away into black feathers that seemed to disintergrate in the breeze while she considered her options.

They were few.

However, Mortianna enjoyed a challenge. Unless it was Dragons. Dragons were a pain in the ass. A broken door was surely solveable. But, for now, she had a different priority. Find the people. So she dismissed her door. Or tried to. It would not go away. "Thor's balls!" she swore, "Worst day ever!" she kicked the door again because it made her feel better. Well, if the door wasn't going to go away, she was just going to have to take it with her... or something. She sighed and sat down on the grass.

Quicksilver: Howisshe?Isshealright?Imusetspeakwithmysisteratonce.
Hawkeye: What is that noise?
IronMan: That is the noise Pietro makes right before he's tossed out of the airlock. ~ Avengers: The Children's Crusade #6